The present invention is a multi-service mobile station, the data storing and power saving properties of which are optimized and which is connected to a mobile communication network by radio. In addition to the normal mobile station functions, such as speech and data services, said multi-service mobile station is suitable for a versatile data communication terminal. Said multi-service mobile station offers e.g. telefax (facsmile), calendar and notebook services and makes it possible to have a radio connection to other data communication networks, for example to Internet, for utilization of various services.
In the modern information society people are more and more dependent on telecommunication networks and services offered by them. Utilizing telecommunication networks has been experienced to be so important that people no more want to be dependent on the bonds of traditional wired network. This is why a great number of people already have wireless mobile stations, e.g. GSM stations, which are mainly used for normal speech communication.
To a more increasing extent people have become dependent on even other telecommunication services available, such as telefax, electronic mail, Internet and other information transfer services. When one is used to these services in the traditional office environment, they are difficult to give up for example when leaving for a business trip.
In order to manage when on the road, as easily as possible, e.g. one""s time and meetings, so called electronic notebooks have been developed. They are generally called PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), PCD (Personal Communication Device) and PIC (Personal Intelligent Communicator) devices. These devices are typically of the size of a largish pocket calculator and often equipped with a touch screen. The user can with a plastic tip pencil designed for this particular purpose, or even by touching the screen with fingers, write text and figures on the screen, from which the device interprets the information given. In addition to that, the user can control the functions of the device by touching menus which the device generates in the display. Typical services made possible by PDA devices are e.g. calendar and notebook services, reminding of agreed meetings by e.g. an acoustic signal, and a phone book from which information can be searched based upon a person""s or company""s name or other corresponding information. Additionally, PDA devices often also have a pocket calculator function.
When the features of a mobile station, a computer and a typical PDA device are integrated and packed in a very compact size, the result is a very versatile wireless data communication terminal. An example of a device comprising a touch screen known from PDA devices, DOS operating system known from computers, and a traditional mobile station, is presented in U.S. Pat. No. 5,422,656. With the device according to said patent publication it is possible to use various telecommunication services, e.g. to use it as a normal mobile telephone, to transmit and receive telefax messages or to use it as a pocket calculator.
The solutions presented in said US Patent yet have their disadvantages. Because the device is based on DOS operating system known from computers, the device must be at commissioning be initialized by loading the operating system in the processor of the device. After this, the first service, e.g. mobile telephone service, is loaded in a memory. When the mobile telephone service is initialized, it further initializes the necessary auxiliary components, and contacts a base station. All these initializing operations are time consuming and it takes quite a long time until the device is prepared for wireless communication after switch-on.
When shifting from one service to another, e.g. from said telefax service to said phone service, the user must first save the eventual information used by him in the previous service in order not to loose it when starting a new service. This is laborious and can easily be forgotten in a hurry. This will happen e.g. when the user is writing a telefax message and answers an incoming call too hurriedly. Alike when initializing the device for the first time, also all new services must be separately loaded in the memory of the device before they can be used. This downgrades the usability of services and does not offer a handy method for transferring information from one service to another. Neither does the operating system used make it possible to use several services simultaneously.
A very big disadvantage is also, that information which has not been stored, is lost when battery voltage drops too low, or if for some other reason power supply is cut off or disturbed. This happens e.g. if the battery gets loose or if there is poor contact in battery terminals.
Now a multi-service mobile station has been invented, with which at least part of the above mentioned problems can be avoided.
The multi-service mobile station according to the invention is always automatically ready for use when a sufficiently charged battery is connected. To enable this without reducing the operating time when battery powered, the multi-service mobile station is preferably provided with an advanced power saving automation. Moving from one service to another is executed either by selecting the required service using specific service keys or by touching the part of a touch screen which indicates the required service. When the user moves from one service to another, the information belonging to the previous service is stored automatically. This is the case e.g. when the user is using some service other than speech service at the moment when an incoming call is connected and preferably no information is lost even if the user moves directly to speech service.
Storing of information is carried out in such a way, that when the user selects a new service, the processor of the multi-service mobile station stores the user input and the status data connected with the previous service in the memory of the multi-service mobile station as a response to leaving a service. When the user for the next time returns to the same service, the processor of the multi-service mobile station retrieves, based upon said status data stored in the memory, the previous user situation of said service and presents it in the display of the multi-service mobile station. In this way the user can continue utilizing the service preferably directly from the situation, in which the service was when last used by the user.
Because the multi-service mobile station automatically stores the information processed by it, it is possible to set the multi-service mobile station in automatic answering mode, in which mode speech service or respectively telefax service is automatically activated upon an incoming message. Using other services during speech service is also possible.
The advanced automatic data storing and power saving methods take care of the storing of information also in case of disturbances in power supply. If the state of battery charge goes down too much, or if e.g. the battery is disconnected from the multi-service mobile station, the information on all services and the processed information are stored automatically. All processed information is usable again when the power supply returns to normal.
The utilization of the services of the multi-service mobile station according to the invention is not limited only to services known from PDA devices and mobile stations, but it can also be equipped with an infrared transmitter-receiver, which enables utilizing the multi-service mobile station e.g. for transferring information between the multi-service mobile station and an external device, e.g. a personal computer, as a wireless pay terminal in shops, as a remote control device or as a key in security applications.
It is characteristic of the invention, that the multi-service mobile station comprises information storing means for automatically storing information related to the service in use, when a predetermined criterium is met.
There are several embodiments, different in their mechanical approach, for the multi-service mobile station according to the invention which utilizes automatic data storing methods and power saving methods. By enhancing the display and keyboard of a traditional mobile station it is possible to create a user interface large enough to provide the required services. This is the case in particular if the display of the multi-service mobile station is provided with a touch sensitive surface enabling using the display for receiving alphanumeric and graphic information. The above described solution is applicable if the volume of information to be processed by the multi-service mobile station is not very large, because the small size of the display and/or keyboard set their own limitations.
The multi-service mobile station according to the invention is described in detail in the following using one preferable embodiment, the mechanical solutions of which are different from traditional mobile stations. There are though no limitations to the utilization of the automatic data storing methods and power saving methods according to the invention in devices, the mechanical construction of which has a greater resemblance with traditional mobile stations. Said preferable embodiment enables the use of e.g. a larger display and a larger keyboard without an increase in the multi-service mobile station""s main dimensions.